Sickle guard



K. L. MAGEE SICKLE GUARD Filed June 27, 1945 Oct. H, 1949 Patented Oct. 11, 1949 2,484,630 SICKLE GUARD Kenneth L.-Magee, Burlington, Iowa, assignor to J. 1. Case Company, Racine, Wis., a corpora tion of Wisconsin Application June 27, 1945, Serial No. 601,787

My invention relates to sickle guards. One of the objects of my invention is to provide a unitary plural sickle guard construction of shaped sheet metal which will strongly resist lateral shifting and twisting of the individual guards.

Further objects and advantages of the invention will be apparent from the description and claims.

In the drawings, in which two embodiments of my invention are shown,

Figure 1 is a plan view showing a duplex guard section;

' Fig. 2 is a section on the line 2-2 of a similar guard installed in a cutting device;

Fig. 3 is a rear view of Fig. 1, parts being broken away;

Fig. 4 is a plan view of another form in which the guards are united by spot-welding, or the like; and

Fig. 5 is a rear view of Fig. 4, parts being broken aw y.

Referring to the drawings in detail, the construction shown in Figs. 1-3, inclusive, comprises a supporting bar I, shown as an angle iron, which extends the length of the sickle, a plurality of sickle guards 2 secured to the supporting bar I by means of bolts 3, a sickle, including the sickle bar 4 and the sickle sections 5, mounted for reciprocation with respect to the sickle guards 2, and ledger plates 6 mounted on the sickle guards having cutting edges cooperating with the cutting edges of the sickle sections 5.

The sickle guard element i of shaped sheet metal, stamped or drawn, to provide a pair of guards 2, each guard having an inverted channellike portion having an upper medial web portion 1 and two elongated flanges -8 extending downwardly from the opposite side edges of the web, the Web having a flat portion 9 to which the ledger plate is secured, a depressed portion ill in the rear of the flat portion, bent down to form a transverse channel for the bar 4 on which the sickle sections are mounted, and a flat portion H in the rear of the depressed portion having an opening I2 to receive the ecuring bolt 3. The two guards may be formed from a single piece of sheet metal united by an angle construction l3 extending between and connecting the rear ends of the guards.

A guard plate I4, which also may be of formed sheet metal, has a front tapering portion, which may be spot-welded at I5 to overlie the tapering front of the portion of the front end of the sickle guard. This guard plate extends rearwardly over 3 Claims. (Cl. 56-307) the sickle sections 5 and ledger plate 6 to hold the stalk of grain in proper shearing position. The rear end of the guard plate may be recessed at I 6 to enable insertion of the fastening rivet I! which secures the ledger plate to the guard. The front end of the ledger plate is tucked into a central recess I8 formed in the guard plate I which, together with'the guard, provides a pocket for the reduced extension of the front end of the ledger plate 6. It will be seen that the upper surface of the guard finger has no upwardly opening pockets tocatch dust, trash, or the like. The shortest distance between the edges of the flanges 8 of a guard finger in any section normal to the web portion 1 may be at least as great as the shortest distance betweeri these flanges at any other point in the same section nearer to the web portion.

The construction shown in Figs. 4 and 5 is similar to that of Figs. 1, Ziand 3, but in this form the guards 20 are stamped out separately, each being provided with an angle construction 2| extending laterally therefrom toward an adjacent guard section 20 to which it may be united by a welding operation at 22 (Fig. 5). The lateral extensions 2| are provided with downturned flange portions 23, which abut each other at 22. Otherwise, the construction is substantially the same as that disclosed in Figs. 1-3, inclusive.

The constructions described provide a wide base for the connection of the guard construction with the supporting bar I which prevents lateral shifting and twisting of the guards when unusual force are encountered which would tend to force these guards laterally or to twist them.

Further modifications will be apparent to those skilled in the art and it is desired, therefore, that the invention be limited only by the scope of the appended claims.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim and desire to secure by Letters Patent is:

1. A stamped sheet metal sickle guard having a plurality of guard fingers, to be secured to a guard supporting bar for use with a sickle bar and sickle sections, each finger having a channel portion comprising an elongated ledger plate receiving web portion and two elongated ground engageable flanges extending from the opposite sides of said web portion, respectively, the length of any line of any transverse section normal to said web portion and parallel to said web portion being as great as the length of any other such line lying closer to said web portion whereby the guard may be formed by stamping operation, said flanges converging toward a point and tapering toward a point, a plan view of said web portion comprising a forwardly directed finger portion, said web portion and flange construction extending in a direction away from said point and across at least a portion of said guard supporting bar, the connections between the fingers comprising a web portion connecting the web portions of the fingers and aflange extending from said connecting web portion and connecting the adjacent flanges of adjacent fingers.

2. A stamped sheet metal sickle guard having jgnay be formed by stamping operation, said a plurality of guard fingers, to be securedhtola I guard supporting bar for use with a sicklebar and sickle sections; each finger having a-rchannel portion comprising an elongated-ledger plate re.-..-

ceiving web portion and two elongated ground engageable flanges extending-tram the opposite sides of said web portion, respectively, the short est distance between the edges of the flanges-in any section normal to said web portion being at deastas great as the shortestdistance between said flanges at any other point in the same sec- :"tion nearer to said web: portion whereby the guard may be formed bystamping operationsaid flanges-converging toward'a, point and tapering :toward. a point; a plan-view of said web portion comprising a forwardly directed finger-portion, said. web portion and flange construction extending in rasdirection away from said point and across at least :a portion of said-guardsupporting bar,- the connections between the fingers comprising. a web portion connecting theweb poritions of the fingers and a-fiange extending from :said connecting web portion and connecting the adjacent flanges of adjacent .fingers.

'3. A stamped sheetmetal-sickle guard having -a plurality ofguard-fingersto be secured .to a

guard supporting barfor use :with a sickle bar --and sicklesections, each guard finger having a channel portion-comprising an elongated web flanges converging toward a point and tapering toward a point, a plan view of said web portion --comprising a forwardly directed finger portion,

said' web portion and flange construction extending inadirection away from said point and across vat least a portion of said guard supporting bar, and 'said web portion having an ofiset sickle bar receiving recess disposed between said ledger plate receiving part and said guard bar attachable part, the connections between the fingers comprising. a Web portion connecting .the web portions of the fingers and a flange extending irom said connecting web portion and connecting the adjacent flanges of adjacentfingers.

KENNETH L. MAGEE REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record, in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 105,311 Crosby :July 12, 1870 782,296 Webber Feb. 14, 19%

1,726,378 Barber Aug. 27,'--l.;929

FOREIGN PATENTS Number Country Date 18,464 Great Britain 1991 

